Farrakhan Blames Jews for 9/11 Attacks, Reaffirming His Status as the Leading Anti-Semite in America

New York, NY, March 5, 2015 … Minister Louis Farrakhan devoted a large portion of his annual address to followers in Chicago to the anti-Semitic myth that Jews were responsible for the 9/11 terrorist attacks.

The Anti-Defamation League (ADL), which has extensively reported on the anti-Semitic activities of Farrakhan and his group, said that Farrakhan’s latest speech reaffirms his status as the leading anti-Semite in America.

It was the latest in a long litany of hate-filled diatribes from Farrakhan, the anti-Semitic and racist leader of the Nation of Islam, who has for decades used his pulpit and his organization to promote hatred aimed at Jews, blaming them for -- among other things -- the slave trade and the modern-day subjugation of Black people in America.

“Farrakhan is the pied piper of bigotry. No one perhaps since Father Coughlin has been able to so use and abuse his status as a religious leader with a large audience to obsessively harp on about perceived Jewish power and influence,” said Abraham H. Foxman, ADL National Director. “At a time when anti-Semitic attitudes in America are at historic lows, Farrakhan’s unabashed promotion of anti-Semitism is a throwback to the intolerance of another era.”

Mr. Foxman added, “Unlike most fringe anti-Semites, Farrakhan still has a significant following who not only listen raptly, but who cheer him on with every new insult.”

During Part 2 of his annual Saviours’ Day speech on March 1 at NOI’s Mosque Maryam in Chicago, which was also live-streamed to thousands of NOI members on the Internet, Far­rakhan alleged Jews com­mit­ted the 9/11 terrorist attacks in order to start a war between the West and the Mus­lim world, and in order to enable the Jew­ish owner of the World Trade Cen­ter to col­lect bil­lions of dol­lars in insur­ance money.

Farrakhan cited one of the most common anti-Semitic 9/11 conspiracy theories, suggesting that Israelis had fore­knowl­edge of the attacks and that Jews received a text mes­sage not to come to work on Sep­tem­ber 11. He also claimed that Israel and Jews control U.S. for­eign policy and act against America’s inter­ests.

The Anti-Defamation League was founded in 1913 to stop the defamation of the Jewish people and to secure justice and fair treatment to all. Today it is the world’s leading organization combating anti-Semitism, exposing hate groups, training law enforcement on hate crimes, developing anti-bias education programs for students, countering cyber-hate and relentlessly pursuing equal rights for all.